By Brandi Makuski | Point Plover Metro Wire
A Stevens Point man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for attempted sexual assault of an eight-year-old girl.
Emmanuel J. Gonzalez, 36, will also serve 10 years on extended supervision — but he could be required to serve the entirety of the sentence in prison if he violates the conditions of his supervision. Gonzalez also received 509 days of credit for the time he’s already served.
Gonzalez has been behind bars since October 2022 on a $750,000 cash bond for seven counts related to burglary and sexual assault of a child under the age of 12.
He was in court for sentencing on March 22 with his attorney, Preston Smead, and with several family members in attendance. The victim’s family and several Stevens Point police officers were also in the courtroom on Friday.
Gonzalez avoided a trial by pleading no contest in January to attempted first-degree sexual assault of a child under the age of 12. Several other charges, including second-degree sexual assault/use of force, resisting an officer, and three counts of bail-jumping, were dismissed but read-in for sentencing.
Two members of the victim’s family provided statements before Branch I Judge Michael Zell. Both spoke about the sense of fear that now enveloped the family, the difficulty in trusting others, and the trouble they and the young victim share in sleeping.
Gonzalez’s parents also addressed the court. His father said he believed his son was “set up,” but his mother begged the Court for mercy, saying her son had a serious drug problem and the family would do whatever it took to get him the appropriate help. Gonzalez wept as his mother spoke.
Gonzalez also addressed Zell, saying how sorry he was for the incident, and that “as a father, I can only imagine what that is like for the family.” Gonzalez was reportedly under the influence of alcohol and methamphetamine at the time of the attack and has little memory of what happened when he entered a stranger’s home on the 900 block of First St. in Stevens Point and assaulted the girl in the middle of the night.
Prosecutors say the girl’s family members caught Gonzalez, who was unknown to the family, in the act of raping an eight-year-old girl in a hallway after he’d broken into the home.
When officers entered the residence, they saw Gonzalez being restrained. His pants were unbuttoned and unzipped and he was not wearing a shirt, the complaint said. Gonzalez repeatedly told the two people restraining him that, “I thought she was my wife.”
The child’s grandmother told police that before being restrained, Gonzalez attempted to crawl out of a window to escape, and when she tried to stop him, he twice put his hand under her shirt, grabbed her breast, and squeezed, causing her pain. After his arrest, Gonzalez was taken to the hospital, where he made numerous sexual and vulgar remarks to the female officer and nurse, the complaint said.
During questioning, Gonzalez said he’d been drinking alcohol at a local bar and denied any memory of the assault, claiming to have been either drunk or drugged. He also said that in the past, he would “try strangers’ doors to see if they were unlocked, and if they were, he would walk in,” the complaint said.
This story originally appeared in the Point Plover Metro Wire and is republished by permission. See the original story here.
During questioning, Gonzalez said he’d been drinking alcohol at a local bar and denied any memory of the assault, claiming to have been either drunk or drugged. He also said that in the past, he would “try strangers’ doors to see if they were unlocked, and if they were, he would walk in,” the complaint said.
